T is for Temptation

 

A German bakery is probably one of the most tempting places on earth. It seems there is a bakery on every other corner and they not only sell all kinds of breads and rolls but also delicious pastry and cakes. Some of them are sit-down cafés where you can have coffee and cake, and many also serve breakfast.

Rischart is a bakery and café in Munich with 17 stores all over the city. The first bakery was opened in 1883 and since then, five generations of Rischarts have made this bakery one of the most popular in Germany. Its main café is at Marienplatz and that's where we decided to have breakfast one morning.

Of course the location is superb. We could do a lot of people watching while we were waiting for our food and also observe what was going on at Neues Rathaus. At the full hour we heard the bells ringing of the churches in the vicinity. The weather was wonderful and we had the most attentive waiter you could wish for.

We got orange juice and coffee served in their very own designed Rischart mugs. Every year a new mug is designed with images of Oktoberfest. Rischart has its own "sugar castle" at Oktoberfest, called Café Kaiserschmarrn.

Kaiserschmarrn is what the Geek had for breakfast whereas Kaefer opted for the vegan breakfast and I chose the "Klassiker".

Can you see all the bread and rolls that Rischart is selling at its bakery? I always miss the variety of our healthy German bread.

And here's some of their sweet stuff - those of you who have a sweet tooth, are you tempted?

I also bought a Rischart mug - I couldn't resist their cute designs. This one is from 2015. The word "Wiesn" on top refers to Oktoberfest that takes place on the Wiesn.

You probably guessed it - since there are a couple drinks in this post I am linking to Elizabeth and Bleubeard's T Tuesday.

Sunday Gratitude

Today, our spring break comes to an end. It's back to school and work tomorrow.

It's been a beautiful week and there is a lot to be grateful for.

We all slept in, almost every day. I usually get up at 5:45 during the week, 7:30 on weekends. However, this week, with just a very few exceptions, I slept later than 8:00. This just shows me how much we all needed some rest and really good sleep. Today I feel so much more rested than a week ago.

I enjoyed going to the Swedish bakery in our neighborhood in the morning with the Geek. It was lovely when we met friends there and walked back together, stopping at their garden, chatting and talking about the new gardening season. They had loads of oranges and gave us a few from which we made fresh squeezed juice we had for breakfast. What a treat!

I did a lot of gardening, planting some more peonies and clematis. My French lilac is already blooming and I enjoy its beautiful fragrance. My freesias got knocked down during a brief rain, so I cut them and brought them inside where they filled the house with their lovely scent. They still do, and I enjoy it. The first poppies have opened their beautiful blooms, however, the deer had their share as well. Happy deer...

The Geek built a clothesline for me - out of redwood again, our favorite wood. He added a huge planting box and a trellis on one side and there will be a little "seat" on the other side where I can put the laundry basket while hanging the clothes on the line to dry. I am so happy. Pictures will follow when it will be complete.

It was wonderful just to spend time with my family. Having time to talk during dinner, watching movies afterwards. My daughter loves the British series "Mr Selfridge" and we watched the two seasons together before the third season starts tonight. At the beginning I wasn't too enthusiastic, but then the characters grew on me and I quite like the series now. It is not as good as "Downton Abbey" though.

On Friday we went to the South Bay to go to the German bakery in Los Altos. We had German pretzels, raspberry cheesecake and great coffee. Across from the bakery is a German grocery store and we just loved it - it's wonderful when you find food that you're missing. We also went to IKEA which I always find inspirational, and returned home via Highway 1 up the coast which was lovely and so much more beautiful than boring and crowded 101.

Yesterday Kaefer and I went prom dress shopping. She had some ideas about her prom dress and honestly, they were all a bit on the expensive side. Both my husband and I are very conservative when it comes to spending money, so I offered Kaefer to go with her and see whether we can find something in our stores here instead of doing our shopping online. Guess what? We found quite a lot of affordable AND beautiful dresses and she finally decided to buy a stunning red dress that suits her so well. I'm very proud of her that she didn't mope but went with our suggestions and was a very reasonable girl.

And now it's your turn - what are you grateful for on this Sunday?

Hanging Pumpkin in a Fairy Garden

While Jo and I did our tour through some local nurseries we stopped in between at Wildflour Bakery in Freestone for some scones. Their scones are legendary good - I had a Gravenstein apple, raspberry and marzipan one whereas Jo enjoyed a Meyer lemon and raspberry one. I think she also had almonds in hers. They are sinfully good!

Kim's texture pumpkingrunge in soft light at 30%

The bakery has a little garden in the back where we retreated to eat our scones at some place in the shade (it was a very hot day). At the end of this natural tunnel we saw this huge pumpkin hanging, further secured with some garden twine. I expected some fairies turning up and dancing on this pumpkin!

Kim's texture dustyrose in soft light at 65% (texture brushed from pumpkin), 

copy and multiply at 65%

I'm linking up with Kim's Friday Finds - a new favorite of mine!

Bread

We were running out of bread, so I went to Wildflour Bakery in Freestone to buy a few loaves of our favorite bread - four loaves each of the 100% rye with caraway and the whole wheat (you know how bread addicted we are). By now they know me there because I turn up around every three weeks to get my big order.

The entrance already promises of a rustic environment.

Inside it's just one huge room that is only divided by the counter. There is one big table in the customer area where you can sit and eat their sticky buns and scones and drink their excellent coffee (very strong). Behind the counter you can see all the bread and have a good view of the bakery itself, including the beautiful wood fired brick oven, the heart of the bakery.

One of the most important ingredients - the flour.

They also have beautiful gardens that invite for a stroll...

...and where you can sit in peace and enjoy your food and coffee.

But the best is, was and always will be - the bread!